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The Global Currency Power of the US Dollar

Problems and Prospects

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  • © 2021

Overview

Authors:
  1. Anthony Elson

    1. School of Advanced International Studies, Johns Hopkins University, Washington, USA

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  • Offers a detailed analysis of why the dollar serves as the dominant currency of the global financial system

  • Provides a balanced assessment of the main benefits and costs of this dollar-centered system

  • Considers three alternative currency arrangements that could address the main concerns about the current system

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Table of contents (10 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages i-xv
    Download chapter PDF

  2. The US Dollar as a Global Currency

    • Anthony Elson
    Pages 1-14

  3. The Origins of the Global Currency Power of the US Dollar

    • Anthony Elson
    Pages 15-30

  4. The Growth in the Role of the Dollar as a Global Currency Power

    • Anthony Elson
    Pages 31-52

  5. The Benefits of the Dollar System to the United States and the Rest of the World

    • Anthony Elson
    Pages 53-71

  6. The Defects of the Dollar-Centered Global Financial System

    • Anthony Elson
    Pages 73-93

  7. Prospects for the Dollar

    • Anthony Elson
    Pages 95-119

  8. Possible Reforms of the Dollar-Centered Reserve System

    • Anthony Elson
    Pages 121-137

  9. The IMF and Reform of the Dollar-Centered Reserve System

    • Anthony Elson
    Pages 139-158

  10. The Dollar and Digital Currencies

    • Anthony Elson
    Pages 159-179

  11. Conclusions

    • Anthony Elson
    Pages 181-197

  12. Back Matter

    Pages 199-205
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Keywords

About this book

This book explains how the US dollar serves as the primary reserve currency for the international financial system and assesses its prospects for the future. The book provides an analysis of the main factors that have given rise to the global currency power of the dollar and the key benefits that have accrued to both the United States and other countries from this arrangement. It then considers the growing costs that can be associated with the dollar-centered reserve system and the prospects for the medium-term in terms of its potential threats to global financial stability. In the light of these considerations, the book examines three alternative currency arrangements that could address some or all of the defects associated with the global currency power of the dollar. These include a shift to a multi-reserve currency system, an enhancement of the IMF’s role as an international lender of last resort and provider of global “safe” assets, and the introduction of central bank digital currencies. 

"A cogent, persuasive and timely look at the dollar's power." Kirkus Reviews

Authors and Affiliations

  • School of Advanced International Studies, Johns Hopkins University, Washington, USA

    Anthony Elson

About the author

Anthony Elson is an international economist, writer, and university lecturer residing in the Washington, D.C. area. For a number of years, he was a senior staff member of the International Monetary Fund. Since leaving the Fund, he has worked as a consultant for the World Bank and has taught at Duke, Johns Hopkins and Yale Universities. He has also been a Senior Associate at St. Antony’s College (Oxford University), a Visiting Fellow at the London School of Economics, and the AGIP Professor of International Economics at the Johns Hopkins SAIS European Center. He is the author of four previous books on globalization published by Palgrave Macmillan: Governing Global Finance: The Evolution and Reform of the International Financial Architecture (2011); Globalization and Development: Why East Asia Surged Ahead and Latin America Fell Behind (2013); The Global Financial Crisis in Retrospect: Evolution, Resolution and Lessons for Prevention (2017); and The United States in the World Economy: Making Sense of Globalization (2019).

Bibliographic Information

  • Book Title: The Global Currency Power of the US Dollar

  • Book Subtitle: Problems and Prospects

  • Authors: Anthony Elson

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-83519-4

  • Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan Cham

  • eBook Packages: Economics and Finance, Economics and Finance (R0)

  • Copyright Information: The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021

  • Hardcover ISBN: 978-3-030-83518-7Published: 16 September 2021

  • Softcover ISBN: 978-3-030-83521-7Published: 17 September 2022

  • eBook ISBN: 978-3-030-83519-4Published: 15 September 2021

  • Edition Number: 1

  • Number of Pages: XV, 205

  • Number of Illustrations: 1 b/w illustrations

  • Topics: Macroeconomics/Monetary Economics//Financial Economics, International Economics, Globalization

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